RELAY Coffee Roasters

What RELAY Coffee Roasters does

RELAY Coffee Roasters (legal entity Red Hill Coffee Trade Inc.) is a privately held specialty coffee roaster and café operator founded in September 2008 by Jason and Rachel Hofing in Hamilton, Ontario. The company sources Fair Trade and organic certified green coffee from seven origin cooperatives spanning Colombia, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Peru, Sumatra, and Nicaragua, and roasts in small batches using time, temperature, color, and aroma control, with Swiss Water Process decaffeination as a specialty line. The product portfolio includes single-origin coffees (seven countries), three house blends (Espresso, Switchboard, Ratio & Yield), Swiss Water decaf, bundled three-packs, and Rishi loose-leaf teas, sold in 8oz, 1lb, and 5lb formats.

The company operates a three-channel go-to-market: (1) direct-to-consumer e-commerce through a Shopify storefront with free Ontario shipping on orders over $45; (2) three owned-and-operated retail cafés in Hamilton at the Farmers' Market (opened 2011), Concession Street (2013), and 27 King William Street (2019); and (3) a B2B wholesale program supplying cafes, restaurants, and businesses. Pricing is unit-based with no subscription model: 1lb bags range from $27.75–$32.00 CAD and bulk 5lb from $112–$120 CAD. Customer segments are distributed across individual home brewers, wholesale operators, tea drinkers, and gift purchasers. With 11 employees and concentrated Ontario-only distribution, the business operates as a craft micro-roaster with strong local brand presence.

Name

RELAY Coffee Roasters

Legal name

Red Hill Coffee Trade Inc.

Website

https://relaycoffee.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

RELAY Coffee Roasters is an 11-employee craft coffee roaster in Hamilton, Ontario that sources Fair Trade and organic green coffee from seven origin cooperatives and sells small-batch roasted coffee, decaf, loose-leaf tea, and three-packs via three owned cafés, a Shopify e-commerce store shipping across Ontario, and a B2B wholesale channel.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Coffee Roasting

NAICS

Coffee and Tea Manufacturing (311920)

SIC

Beverages (2080), Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810)

akta.pro primary industry

Coffee Roasters with Cafe (Roastery Cafes) (THAFADAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Coffee Roasting & Grinding (AFAFADAB), Specialty Coffee & Tea (Single-Origin, Micro-lot, Premium) Processing (AFAFADAJ), Specialty Coffee & Tea Retail (Beans, Leaves, Accessories) (CRAHAGAI)

Keywords

• Specialty coffee roasting
• Single origin coffee
• Fair trade coffee
• Wholesale coffee supply
• Specialty cafe retail

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamilton

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Direct Coffee & Tea Sales: E-commerce sales of roasted coffee beans (8oz, 1lb, 5lb packages) and Rishi loose-leaf teas through Shopify online store. One-time purchase model with repeat customer potential.
2. Cafe Retail Sales: Walk-in cafe sales at King William location including coffee beverages, lattes, tea, dessert waffles, and in-house baked goods.
3. Wholesale B2B: B2B wholesale accounts for cafes, restaurants, and businesses supplying fresh roasted coffee in bulk quantities.
4. Gift Cards: Physical gift cards sold at $10 and $25 denominations for use at King William cafe location.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

RELAY Coffee Roasters roasts small-batch fair trade and organic specialty coffee in Hamilton, Ontario, selling single-origin and blended coffees, Swiss Water decaffeinated coffee, and Rishi loose-leaf teas via a Shopify e-commerce store with Ontario-wide delivery, three physical café locations, and a wholesale program supplying cafés, restaurants, and businesses. The company sources green coffee from cooperatives in Colombia, Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Peru, Honduras, and Sumatra.

Product overview

RELAY Coffee Roasters operates as a specialty coffee roaster and café chain in Hamilton, Ontario, offering a portfolio of single-origin coffees from seven global origins (Colombia, Mexico, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Peru, Sumatra, Honduras), three house blends (Espresso, Switchboard, Ratio & Yield), Swiss Water decaf, and Rishi loose-leaf teas. The company sells directly to consumers via its Shopify-powered e-commerce store and three physical café locations, while also serving B2B wholesale customers. Products are available in 8oz (227g) and 1lb (454g) formats, with bulk 5lb options for most coffees. Educational brew guides support home brewing across multiple methods.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Single Origin Coffee

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Rishi TeacoreTechnology or IntegrationExclusive supplier of loose-leaf teas including Earl Grey, Masala Chai, China Breakfast, Jade Cloud, Peppermint, Rooibos varieties, and specialty blends. Rishi is an organic and Fair Trade certified tea brand.
• Red de Productores Ecológicos de la Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta (Red Ecolsierra)coreOthersColombia-based cooperative of 440 families across 23 small groups in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta region. Provides fair trade organic coffee from altitudes of 900-1900 meters.
• Productores de café de Motozintla (PROCAFEM)coreOthersMexico-based cooperative with 335+ members from Chiapas state including Siltepec, Bella Vista, Escuintla and Motozintla communities. Provides coffee from Sierra Madre, Chiapas at 1200m altitude.
• La Federación Comercializadora de Café Especial de Guatemala (FECCEG)coreOthersGuatemala federation representing 1,943 small farmers including 529 women, comprised of 12 producer cooperatives in Western Highlands. Focus on fair prices, organic agriculture, gender equality, and food security.
• Capucas Cocafcal Co-operativecoreOthersHonduran cooperative in Santa Rosa de Copán region, one of the largest certified (organic and Fair Trade) cooperatives in the world with 840 growing farms across nearly 3,500 hectares.
• Central Fronteriza del Norte de Cafetaleros (CENFROCAFE)coreOthersPeruvian cooperative founded in 1999 with 220 initial small-scale farmers, now serving over 2,000 farmer members across twelve districts in the Cajamarca region. Provides Fair Trade & Organic certified decaf coffee.
• The Rahmat Kinara CooperativecoreOthersSumatra/Indonesia cooperative founded in 2007 with approximately 700 farmers farming 850 hectares of coffee. Fairtrade certified since 2014, focusing on sustainability and social programs with 20 permanent and 30 seasonal staff.
• Union de Cooperativas de Cafes Especiales Cordillera Isabelia (UCCEI)coreOthersNicaragua cooperative in Matagalpa region providing coffee from altitudes of 1100-1350 meters.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Reunion Island Coffee: Ontario-based specialty roaster with national wholesale distribution and cafe partners. Comparable on craft roasting, direct-trade and organic positioning, and Ontario foodservice wholesale channel.
• Rosso Coffee Roasters: Calgary-based craft roaster with cafes and wholesale program. Comparable on small-batch roasting, direct-trade relationships, and cafe + DTC + wholesale multi-channel strategy.
• Phil & Sebastian Coffee Roasters: Canadian specialty micro-roaster focused on premium single-origin coffee with cafe and wholesale operations. Comparable on small-batch craft roasting quality standards, single-origin focus, and direct-trade sourcing.
• Bridgehead Coffee Roastery: Ottawa-based specialty coffee roaster with Fair Trade and organic positioning and multi-cafe presence. Comparable on cooperative sourcing, Ontario/Canadian craft-roaster footprint, and wholesale-to-cafe distribution model.
• Balzac's Coffee Roasters: Canadian specialty roaster founded in Stratford, ON with a multi-cafe footprint across Ontario. Most directly comparable on roastery-cafe hybrid model, small-batch artisanal positioning, and provincial wholesale reach.
• Detour Coffee Roaster: Hamilton-based specialty coffee roaster with cafes, operating in the same local market as RELAY. Competes head-to-head for Hamilton craft-coffee customers and wholesale accounts with overlapping single-origin, Fair Trade, and small-batch positioning.
• Pilot Coffee Roasters: Toronto-headquartered specialty coffee roaster operating cafes, wholesale, and DTC. Comparable on small-batch single-origin roasting, direct-trade sourcing narrative, and B2B/B2C multi-channel distribution in Ontario.

Broad incumbents

• Starbucks Reserve: Global coffee incumbent with Reserve roastery and premium single-origin program. Sets the upper bound of specialty consumer expectations and competes for premium cafe real estate in Ontario urban markets.
• Tim Hortons: Canadian coffee QSR incumbent now expanding premium and specialty offerings. Provides indirect competitive pressure in Ontario foodservice and wholesale, but operates at fundamentally different scale and price-point than RELAY.

Others

• Rishi Tea: Supplier and distribution partner; organic and Fair Trade certified loose-leaf tea brand that RELAY exclusively resells in its cafes and DTC channel. Relevant as upstream ecosystem participant and adjacent category operator.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/relaycoffee
• Facebookfacebook.com/RELAYCOFFEE
• Instagraminstagram.com/relaycoffee
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/relay-coffee-roasters

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about RELAY Coffee Roasters